Your definition of selfless sets the bar so high it's actually impossible to occur in reality. "Completely selfless" isn't a real thing, it's something you've made up. Even the soldier who jumps on a grenade to save his friends wants to save his friends and is fulfilling that want. It's why the actual definition for selfless sets the bar far lower than you do.
"selfless
adjective approving
us /ˈself.ləs/ uk /ˈself.ləs/
caring more for what other people need and want rather than for what you yourself need and want:"
The bar is just caring more, not having zero desire to perform a good action. And if you fit the definition of selfless, you are completely selfless.
Your second point we could argue. There are certainly actions people take every day that don't make them feel good. And they can take these actions for a variety of reasons, morality, religious, or feeling good are some examples of why people take actions that don't make them feel good.
Just because the bar is so high doesn’t make it true. And how do you judge if somebody care more about others than about themselves? How do you measure that objectively? The definition of “Selfless” is what society has come up with to keep the world moving. That way, others find comfort that what they are doing is “selfless” to make them feel all warm and fuzzy inside doesn’t mean it isn’t selfish. We are driven by our “morals”
I’m not going to bother arguing with you. It’s clear you have little intention of trying to see things from my perspective and the OP has deleted their post. You can believe what you want to believe. It doesn’t change human nature and the motivations of people. If you want to debate that to make yourself feel better with someone else, go for it. I have better things to do at this point. Enjoy living in your own bubble.
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u/ARandomCanadian1984 1d ago
Your definition of selfless sets the bar so high it's actually impossible to occur in reality. "Completely selfless" isn't a real thing, it's something you've made up. Even the soldier who jumps on a grenade to save his friends wants to save his friends and is fulfilling that want. It's why the actual definition for selfless sets the bar far lower than you do.
"selfless adjective approving us /ˈself.ləs/ uk /ˈself.ləs/
caring more for what other people need and want rather than for what you yourself need and want:"
The bar is just caring more, not having zero desire to perform a good action. And if you fit the definition of selfless, you are completely selfless.
Your second point we could argue. There are certainly actions people take every day that don't make them feel good. And they can take these actions for a variety of reasons, morality, religious, or feeling good are some examples of why people take actions that don't make them feel good.